Breaking the Dark: Chapter 9
-IRIS'S PERSPECTIVE-
Maybe it's just a coincidence . . . I thought. But what if it's not? I mean, don't be too oblivious. Anything could happen at any time. What was weird about coming to the cave was there was a dirt path that we hadn't noticed before. It led to the river but it never crossed my mind as long as I found shelter. I shook it off. We sat in the cave, no sun shining in here making us sit in this icy ass cave with no cover. I sat back against the impenetrable and arid wall staring at Iselina. What have I brought her into? She has obviously been in this situation and used a lot of work to get out of it. I looked away. Every time I look at her face, my mind races. How has she been pulling this job off with school and friend issues? I have known her since I was a little kid and how did she make herself look younger? Hold up, Iris. Who said you had to believe Tyler and Josh? Josh. We haven't been speaking lately. He would always penetrate my mind with his stupid voice.
Stupid voice, huh? Wow, I never thought you would be thinking of me. It was Josh. He must have been eavesdropping on me.
I thought you left. Leave me alone. I don't want anything to do with you three.
Too late, sweetie. You were born involved so there is nothing you can do about it to leave this situation. Especially Iselina; she's involved but you still want to be there for her . . . Why?
Don't call me sweetie; I don't need to explain to you two. Wait. How was I born to be involved? What kind of bullshit is that?
Tsk. Tsk. Tsk. The sound of disapproval echoed through my mind. Keep the foul language to yourself, honey.
Answer my question.
I heard him moan in his head. I guess. Tyler has been waiting . . . for you.
Are you drunk or something?
He chuckled. I don't drink, Iris. Look I got to go, okay? We're trying to restart the car and we're trying to find you two.
No! We don't want to be found. Why do you think we ran away?
Iselina's' leg twitched and a light inside me lightened. She may be alive. In the background, Josh was speaking gibberish while I was trying to see if she actually can move now. "Iselina? Iselina." I spoke. Her eyes fluttered and her vision settled on me. "Iris!" She hugged me tight with her cold arms and she shivered as we shared our own temperature. She released me and pushes me down against the wall. "Don't move, Iris. I bet your back is so sore and damaged from the bomb and carrying my unconscious ass all the way into this deep jungle." I obeyed her order and shook my head. "I was fine, just worried about you, you know?" She chuckled. "I swear sometimes, you act like those prissy girls from horror movies. You should've left me there! Your back is already jacked up!"
"Yeah, and leave you with them? You already have bad history. Since I wouldn't be there, they would've killed you!" I grunted. She rolled her eyes and touched her throat. "Did you so happen to catch any food or water?" I laughed. "Oh right," she mimicked, "Girly girls don't catch anything but good looks and guys. I'll go get something." She got up and crawled halfway through the cave and I followed. "Iris," She explained while turning around, "You're not in the condition for food gathering." What am I? Peeta from the Hunger Games? Too incapacitated to get food?
"Speak for yourself. I breathed through the pain and you slept through it. We both have spine complications so if you're gathering food, so shall I."
She sighed. "So stubborn these days," She laughed. "Come on. Find a feast. We haven't eaten in hours."
"Right, I forgot. Rich girls are used to eating four meals a day while I can barely pay off the bills with my part-time job; not enough money for food." I sassed. She stumbled into the water and grunted as more pain filled her body. "Come on before I scream." She helped me down and I sighed as my earlier meeting with the salt helped my wound immune against the salt water. We swam across the river onto a marsh and pulled ourselves onto dry land. "Iselina, you go slaughter something and I'll get something to drink, got it?" I asked. She scrunched her eyebrows together. "Sure, leave me to the hard part. Come on, I'll need help catching an animal."
"And what makes you think I can?"
"Because animals love you. They only come to you; it's like you have a special connection with them."
I grunted. She was right; even I noticed it. Birdies and squirrels always ran up to me and stayed there, waiting for me to give them food or just hold them. I was the animal magnet; the weirdo at school. We walk ahead without talking to each other. We hear tweeting and squirrels running up and past us. They see me but when they see Izzy, they scurry for the hills. "Izzy, you're just sending negativity everywhere. Just leave me be and you'll do your thing." She nods and leaves behind a trunk. I walk ahead and whistle Rockin' Robin, a childhood song of mine. I look back and Iselina is out of my sight; hiding behind some kind of tree. "Come on, little animals. It's me . . . Iris. Your nature friend." A rustle of a leaf came in front of me. A white tiny fuzzy creature with creepy red eyes sprung out wagging its round fuzzy tail. A bunny. "Aw, there you go, come out into the open." I offered my hands and he sprung into it, spreading his warm body heat into mine. He was so warm and adorable. I wanted to kiss him and keep him then just the thought of eating him was just insane.
It happened too fast. I leaned down to kiss farewell to the little creature but a piercing rock flung onto the bunny's head. The bunny fell limp in my palms. A trickle of blood falling on its soft fur. Iselina must've forced the rock onto the bunny, sealing its fate. It kills me to see an animal die; it just wants me to break into tears. We have to eat, Iris. Just don't think about it. Out in the clearing, Iselina stood and threw extra rocks onto the floor as a backup just in case she missed. I handed her the creature and wiped away a tear. "Such a cruel way to end a life." I comment. She scoffed. "It wasn't the worst death, I've done worse."
She's done worse. Is Tyler's story true? "Come on, Snow White, let's build a fire and cook this thing."
We settled in our cave. I gathered dry branches and gave them to her for the fire. I soon left without a word and looked around the forest. I need a steep leaf for a bowl. I pondered until I found a curled leaf with pink fangs coming out of it. It had two flat and oval-shaped lips. The plant was green and on the inside it was olive and red with a few berries in it; some animal must have brought them to save them for later. It's later. I raise my hand to catch the purple and blue plump berries but the fruit never left the plant. It seemed to be stuck onto this plant with invisible cement. I grunted as I pulled it with slightly more strength; it didn't budge . . . at all. "What the hell?" The two lips seemed to slowly contract over my hand. I tried jerking the berries with me; shaking the plant vigorously. The lips clasped tightly around my wrist; it's claws digging into my flesh leaving red long marks filling up with my blood. Soon, the scent of fresh meat and blood would waft into another animal's nose and I had to leave soon or Iselina will worry. I stuck my foot into the stem of the plant trying to gain some leverage. Each time I tugged against the fangs, it dug deeper, blooding covering my whole hand and smearing all over the place. How do you kill plants? Spray it with carnivorous plant killer? Remove it from the stem. I became light-headed with the loss of blood; I have to do this now. With my right hand free, I tugged at the thick root; I used my nails to try and speed up the process. I was half way when I grabbed the root and I pulled; you could literally hear the RIP of the stem detaching itself. I fell hard on my back. I used my right and inserted it into the limp opening and pried the mouth open until the back of the mouth ripped in half leaving me with two flat parted lips. "What a bitch."
At dusk, I walked down about two miles near the river where I found a bush of what could be edible leaves. I knelt down and wafted the smell into my nose. Mint Leaves. I grabbed four handfuls and stuffed them into my pocket with the berries. I turned around and skipped along the shore of the river and scooped water in both bowls up to the brim and headed for the cave.
I arrived at the cavern; other than the dim light of the fire, the cave hasn't changed a bit. I knelt and scooted the bowls ahead of me and lifted myself up. I crawled over to Iselina who was sweating from the heat of the fire. She had cut the head off, skinned the bunny, soaked the animal into the salty river, and attached it with stems onto a stick and roasted it over the fire. My face revolved into a surprise expression, the animal was evenly roasted.
"Wow, who knew you could cook." I commented, throwing the berries and mint leaves into her lap.
She looked me up and down and her eyes widened as her vision came upon my scratches. "Oh my god," She exclaimed, "What happened? Who attacked you? Tell me!" She yelled while shaking me worriedly.
I shook her off. "Chill, I'm perfectly fine. I just got attacked from a Venus Fly Trap. He thought my hand was a huge ass fly and wouldn't let go. I had to pry his mouth open and BOOM, water bowls. By the way, wait for an hour or so for the salt to sink to the bottom and the top will be salt-less water. Drink up."
"Perfectly fine? Drink up? Are you insane?! I was worried sick about you and now you come here with all these weird wounds from a plant ambush and you're fine?!" She turned around and fumbled with something.
"What are you? My mother? Seventeen years too late." She walked toward me and broke what seemed to be an Aloe Vera plant in half. "I found this near the stream when I was walking away from the assassination of our lunch. I got it for our missile wounds but we can also use it for your scars. Luckily, I carried more than I can chew." She smeared this cooling invisible medicine on my body. I took off my shirt and let her spread it all over my spine and my stomach; when she was done, I pull on my blouse and rotated her around and treated her the same way. We sighed in relief. She pulled me aside her and stripped the cottontail from the stick. "Here, I know your favorite part of the meat is the breast and mine is the thigh and leg. We both win." I tossed her half of the mint leaves and berries. She handed me the meat on a huge leaf and I dug into it like it would be my last meal. My teeth ripped the flesh from the bone and swallowed it whole. The white meat was so juicy and firm; it had to be the best animal prepared I have ever tasted. I licked the grease off my fingers and the leaf and swallowed the berries and mint leaves in one gulp. I checked the bowl of water and the salt sunk; I poured the fresh water into my mouth and tilted it back when I could taste one grain of salt slip onto my tongue.
We both finished in seven minutes. The meal was delicious but there was no way in hell I was going to stay here long enough to make another one. "Look, we got to go. I'm not the forest type." She came and followed. We came upon the edge of the cave when Iselina pulled me back. I looked back at her for some reasoning and she pointed ahead of me. I searched where she was pointing at and there in my glimpse, Tyler stood there sniffing the leaves on the floor. "He's sniffing for our tracks and scents," Iselina stated. I nodded. That makes sense.
Tyler shot dagger eyes our way. "Does he know we are here?" I whispered. He stared in our direction, probably looking at us straight in our eyes. He stood up and crossed his arms and shook his head in disapproval. "I think so."
The clear current of the river unleveled. It moves side to in high waves and turning into a grubby gray and blue hue. It rose and fell; splashing the drops of liquid all over us. Past the water, Tyler stood there; no emotion was expressed on his face. His mouth was a straight line, his eyes full of seriousness. His body was obstructed as the muddy water rose over the cave; the water spilled into the cave, rushing our way. "Hold your breath!" I screamed. We both gasped before the rush of water hit us and flew us onto the back of the grotto. We both found each other and held hands. This could be the end but not before we fight it off. We rested the soles of our feet on the back wall and pushed for a boost. We let go of our hands and swam our way out. The river has arisen about six feet higher than usual. I couldn't even see through the seaweed hitting our faces and the unusual color of the aquatic making our surroundings blend in. Our hands grasped the edge of the cave and kicked our feet to swim up. We could barely see the surface but the last gleam of sunlight made it easier. It felt like forever, especially with a huge gulp of breath stuck in my lungs. I breathed out a little so my lungs wouldn't feel pressured. Is it getting darker or is it just me? The water slurred and I was getting light-headed again. I could see the outline of Iselina since she was right next to me. Her body swayed among the violent current . . . she was unconscious, again.
A pale and burnished hand outstretched to Iselina around her arms and lugged her above seawater. My arms and legs felt heavy and I couldn't move them anymore. The water seemed to rise higher and higher until I knew I wouldn't reach it in time so I just gave up. Whoever hoarded Iselina didn't have the intention of saving me.
I was proven erroneous. Before my cognizance slipped, the similar pale hand wrapped around my bicep and pulled me out; the marine spilling off my body and leaking into my eyes making them sting and water. I was placed onto the ground; the savior brushed aside my hair that covered my eyes, the last thing I saw were the unique blue eyes pouring into mine.
-JOSH'S PERSPECTIVE-
I was with Jenna; she was still gibbering about the bullshit we let happen and how we fuck things up. I was too busy thinking about Iris and her mate. They were out in the forest and so were we; Tyler split up and I was stuck with her. "You two let her go!" "You guys never do anything right!" "This is why you two got kicked off the council." "You guys are a waste of our people and you two are such filthy bastards." Bullshit drags on and on; same old Jenna.
Tyler came along the path that was already made; walking nonchalantly. I met him, "Jenna has to die! She is so annoying; she won't shut up!" I confessed. "Bro, chill, soon, we will find out what she wants and get her off our backs."
I sighed. "It's bad enough we lived with her for one hundred years, now she came back!" I yelled. Tyler shrugged and walked passed me, walking towards Jenna and discussing a situation with her. I lowered my physique onto a durable and russet tree trunk. I have a plan; I have made this design before I moved here, and now, it was my time to proceed and act upon it. Everything had to fall into a piece and every person was my pawn, and every pawn is going down the right path and if they, somehow, get misplaced, I'll be there to force them back on.
-IRIS'S PERSPECTIVE-
It was dusky and the breeze was whistling. I tiptoed along the pebbled route onto a giant tip of a cliff with razor severe boulders on the bottom calling for my death. It felt as if I was going to tumble off as I looked over; I had the similar feeling of someone watching me I felt in every dream and I turned around.
Josh stood behind me. His sandy blonde hair shined bright in the moonlight. The same eyes were as dark and blue as the Pacific Ocean, as always. He seemed perfect but now that I have known him a bit better, it was different. He was immense and skinny. He had enlightened the dark by the flickering of candlelight. Josh. His name echoed in my mind as I started to back up. He closed in on me as I was barely balancing on the tip of the precipice. "Josh, why is this happening again?" I asked nervously. He had an evil grin on his face as he motioned toward me. I didn't move; I was so afraid, I could've shit my pants if it wasn't a dream. "Josh, stop looking at me like that! You're scaring me." I commanded. Iris, have you figured out who will be hunting you? I shook my head. I haven't slept in a long time and this nightmare hasn't occurred to me, I was too busy handling personal issues. I see. "You never told me why you can telepath with me." I mentioned. You never asked. "But I'm asking you now; why can't you tell me here?" Like I said before, you have to ask the awoken Josh. "Why, why do I have to ask you when I wake up?!" That's a great question; maybe you should ask me that when you wake up. I grunted in frustration. A calm Tyler emerged from the woods and walked nonchalantly over to Josh. "Iris, listen to me, you're in danger, huge danger and an awful death will come your way, and I'll be there . . . for you!" He smiled. He'll be there . . . for me . . . when I die? Oh my fucking gosh, is he going to be there when he kills me? Is that what he's implying? I thought. They both smiled.
Josh reached back in his belt. On the rear of the belt, a silver dagger with a leather handle hung dangerously. He snatched it from the belt and held it out in the moonlight to exaggerate the knife. In the light, the moon revealed that it had long and sharp staggered serrations that led up to a top swage edge taper ground.
He grasped it and flicked his wrist while releasing the knife; before it could do damage to me, I ducked but the knife whizzed towards me and scarred my left temple. Lightning lit up the night and the flash blinded me; when my eyes recovered, the twins were gone. I pushed myself off the rocky surface and booked it into the woods. Tree branches would always hit my face and my clumsy feet would trip over trunks and fallen wood. After multiple bruises on thighs and forearms, I came upon a familiar river. I assembled down on a brown boulder and caught my breath. The current was normal and the water was clearer than 20/20 vision. I knelt down and extended my hand to the aquatic and with one touch, the water evolved into a dark sea. A mysterious suction in the water pulled my body down; I had no time to catch my breath. Gasping for air was useless since I was underwater; it felt like my ankles were tied to anchors pulling me down. I tried swimming but my arms were feathers, I didn't swim upwards, I was sinking. When the last ray of sunlight was fading away, an insipid, resilient arm wrapped around me and lugged me onto the shore.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Thank-you for my reviews and thank-you to my fans that have been there for me from the beginning! Literally, without your views and reviews, I wouldn't be making these chapters. For me to finish this chapter, I literally did an all-nighter and that's why I am uploading this chapter at 6:41 am. I locked myself up in my room with Diet Coke and this computer and I finally finished this chapter. [Applause] Please enjoy and review because every review is a sign that I should continue my story or wrap it all up now. One more thing, please tell me who is your favorite character! You don't have to be a member here to review and tell me who your favorite is! R&R!
